Showing posts with label politics. Show all posts
Showing posts with label politics. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 29, 2017
Prime Minister Theresa May is O.K.
Wednesday, March 15, 2017
Trump Would Rather Be Bombing A-rabs
As for Trump's increase of defense spending, although that sounds good in principle--we all want to be safe--the ugly truth about defense spending is that a huge amount goes to waste, up in smoke due to pure negligence, corruption, schmoozing, parties, kickbacks, gifts, you name it. Generals retire to become salesmen for the very firms they used to purchase from. In any case, this is the real reason that Trump wants to increase defense spending--to enrich his cronies the easy way. They don't have to work hard or think at all. They just collect checks from the government. Welfare for the rich.
Saturday, March 4, 2017
To Be Old in America
One thing is sure. These United States cannot ally with Putin. Then we would be evil and so much worse for this poor old world.
Friday, March 3, 2017
Hypocrisy
Thursday, February 2, 2017
Trump the Grump
The U.S. needs about ten years to recover from its addiction to crack
Probably Trump is going to wage war in Yemen, because that would please Saudi Arabia, an old Republican ally, and seems a safe bet and a way to get back at Iran.
I am parking money in a money market fund, because although inflation is cranking back up as I expected, Trump seems unfocused, unprepared and unprofessional, and he has hatched some major goofballs. Amateur hour all around with Trump in office. He is still campaigning. I don't think he ever stopped being a candidate. He does not know how to be President. I keep wondering when he is going to shut up and start thinking things through before he acts.
Saturday, January 28, 2017
John McWhorter @ CNN
I feel the same way McWhorter does about Trump: "Even a stopped clock is right twice a day." Trump spouts so many words that a man is bound to agree with some. He is like a shotgun. Yeah, a couple pellets are going to hit the mark.
Trump talks too much, for one thing, and engages his mouth more than his brain. He is not the ideal leader. He is going to make a lot of horrible and costly blunders with that angry mouth and hot head of his. The best that I hope for is that he corrects at least some of the blunders of his predecessors, and that his blunders prove to be correctable by his successor.
Due to Trump, Putin, and Xi, I do not have any hope that humanity will do anything to reverse climate change. Anyone living on the coast anywhere in the world is in for a rude shock, and those in the interior are also in for neat experiments like desertification, violent storms, flooding and violent and hungry refugees from the coast. Trump can be wrong, but ninety-nine per cent of world scientists can't be wrong.
On the other hand, is it right that the U.S. and Europe make all the sacrifices in an effort to reverse global warming, while India, China and Russia pump out maximum carbon emissions? If climate change is really inevitable anyway, and it probably is, given the geopolitical reality, then the U.S. might as well do whatever is expedient, because Russia and China represent evil in our world, and must not be permitted any advantages. Putin and Xi are evil incarnate and will never do anything that is good. If the U.S. committed suicide en masse, resulting in the elimination of all man-made carbon emissions, then China and Russia would continue with business as usual, and colonize our space and replace the lost carbon emissions with their own. Therefore, global warming is truly inevitable. It is impossible that China and Russia should cooperate with the U.S. They prefer global catastrophe and large-scale reduction of the world population to cooperation. Perhaps a reduction in global population is the real solution to global warming. There is not as much need for people nowadays, with automation in so many facets of business. The world could get by quite well with a million, let alone the seven billion currently in existence. This is the sobering reality foreseen by the elite, such as Trump, Putin, and Xi. It is my grim prediction for the future. I do not see a future with populous countries, but a future of war and strife, nuclear exchanges, massive pollution (including radioactive), dictatorships, and overall a long-term reduction in the global population. A "Mad Max" future.
Zero Sympathy for Google, Microsoft
My view is, tough titty. They can hire a bright young fellow from Iowa, train him, and keep their workforce 100% American. There is nothing a foreigner can do that an American can't do ten times better. We have a country with 300 million people, a well-educated workforce with a high number of college students, and these tech companies say they can't find enough eggheads? Hogwash!
Personally, I hope that treacherous Microsoft and Google lose a couple billion for depriving Americans of jobs. If they don't employ Americans, they are better off going bankrupt. Executives need to learn that what comes around, goes around. They enjoy the safety and comfort of living in America, yet transfer most of the jobs overseas. Is it a big surprise that American workers are not sympathetic?
Wednesday, January 18, 2017
The Feds' Sense of Humor
Thursday, January 12, 2017
I'm a Stakeholder
Wednesday, January 11, 2017
Poor World
Thursday, January 5, 2017
Trump is Refreshing
Here is hoping that Trump is really a Heart. A blind hope, at this point in time, but nonetheless. Why does a billionaire want to be President? Does he really, is he really so insanely driven that he wants more money through corruption, or is he, could he be... genuine, in some shape or form? Let us all hope Trump is a Heart, for the sake of the country.
Tuesday, January 3, 2017
Republicans Say, "Make it Rain!"
It's always amusing when people vote against their own interests. The low-income folks that voted for the Republicans or did not vote at all or sent in a stupid protest vote or voted for the Green Party nitwit need to to learn how to deal with untreated disease. Take some Bufferin to ease your sufferin. There certainly is not going to be any Obamacare to help you in this world. Got cancer? Take Bufferin. Heart disease? Bufferin. Mental illness? Bufferin. Remember to say "Thank you!" to the Republicans for denying you medical care.
The reason the poor won't have medical care is Republicans need to steal all that money to get richer. Instead of being millionaires, they need to become billionaires. The Republicans say, "Make it rain!"
Wednesday, December 28, 2016
The Daily Stormer
Back in the day, there were similar creatures in Europe. Some committed suicide, while others were shot or hung, after the war. There is meticulous documentation about their activities. He is parroting them. The forces he draws upon are not congenial for human beings. It is in their nature to betray the summoner.
Tuesday, December 27, 2016
Stocks are the Only Investment Vehicle with Wheels
Tuesday, December 20, 2016
Merkel Embraces Thanatos
There is no acceptable level of terrorism. Stop the so-called refugees at the door and tell them to go fix the problems in their own land before bringing their problems to our door. Why are these folk not fighting for their own land? All they want is a free ride in a rich nation. They shirk their duty and then want the West to fix all their problems for them. Europe does not need a bunch of fanatic know-nothings who do not even speak the language of their host country. They care nothing about the culture of Germany. They will ruin Europe and turn it into the same hell-hole they came from. They want sharia law, the rape of women, beheadings and public floggings. That is all they know for a hundred generations.
If the refugees belong anywhere besides their own land, then it would be in neighboring countries, not in Western Europe. The people of Europe are awakening to this truth, and it will not be long before the foolish politicians are cast out in elections.
Monday, December 19, 2016
Merciful Trump?
I figured things out today. The new king hesitates to establish a precedent of prosecuting another king.
For the day may come when Trump, too, fears prosecution. He is likely to do all the things Hillary did or is alleged to have done and far more.
* - I italicized the word "precedent" because our president-elect proved to the world that he did not know how to spell the word. He called the Chinese seizure of our underwater drone "unpresidented" when he meant "unprecedented." The Republicans have a terrible time with grammar, history, and science. Why is that? I will tell you, a lot of people, and not just Democrats, arrive at the obvious conclusion.
Sunday, December 18, 2016
Win at All Costs
Friday, December 16, 2016
What Do I Believe in Politics?
I can't speak about "the left." All I know is that I like what I read in The Guardian (UK), most of the time, if not all of the time.
I believe government should let individuals alone for the most part, save when they may interfere with the rights of other individuals. A man's home is his castle, pure and simple.
I believe that racism is nonsense. To see a man as part of a group only, based on skin color, is really stupid. People vary. They are individuals. They are not all the same. One must keep an open mind, informed by love, compassion, and kindness. To harden one's heart against an entire group, particularly based upon something like skin color, is folly and nonsense. We are commanded to love. It is our duty.
I believe that homophobia is nonsense. Gays have been with us from the beginning. Many will deny it, but gays have founded religions. In this veil, we do see as through a glass darkly. Some things are hidden in plain sight. Kindness is all that is required. Be kind to one another. Perhaps being different from all the others teaches one the importance of being kind.
I believe that bullies are evil. It is easy to harm the weak. We should look out for one another and attempt to create a kinder, gentler society not only for ourselves, but for future generations. Enlightenment is the goal. Liberate this human race from petty squabbles, from desperation, from despair. That is the liberal agenda. Perhaps it is unfeasible, sometimes. One must be pragmatic. But it is the long-term goal.
Sometimes, but not always, organized religion can be a bully. Other times, big corporations. Sometimes entire nations. I believe the world is a better place because the United States sacrificed an entire generation. We bled profusely and paid vast sums of treasure in order to stop Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan. If we had taken the easy way out, the way of Trump, then we would have reached an accommodation with fascism. We would have struck a deal. Trump is a deal-maker. That is sometimes helpful, but there are moral imperatives. If one does not believe in good and evil, then there are no boundaries at all. I believe there is absolute good and absolute evil. I say that the world is a better place by far without the ideas of Hitler holding sway. Mankind can be reduced to insects, and if we are, we are doomed. The earth will be rid of us. Is that what you want? I would prefer that we improve ourselves. There is much to be improved, let us be candid with ourselves. Let us ameliorate. All that is required is patience, love and intelligence. We must use the higher faculties, while keeping the lower ones in check.
Now, I know very well that some will read all this and think liberals are all heart and no brain. That is what I hear all the time. But I am pragmatic. I want things to work. Fundamentally, things have to work. It is not possible to be good without intelligence, without correcting imbalances, imperfections. I write code. Sometimes the code has bugs. Am I perfect? No, I am flawed, and I create buggy code sometimes. I realize that mistakes must be corrected. The division between good and evil is like the serpentine dance of the dragon. It is not easy. Sometimes, with good intentions, we do wrong. That is acknowledged. Therefore, intelligence is required. We must learn from previous mistakes and listen to the other side, including the right-wing, which sometimes is going to be right. The right-wing also is composed of Americans who love their country. I acknowledge that and hope and trust that they, too, acknowledge my own loyalty. We are all on the same side and probably want the same things and are only divided by semantics, the power of words that are woven by politicians. If peace, prosperity, preparedness, longevity, and happiness are the goals, then we want the same things.
Monday, December 12, 2016
Federal Bankruptcy?
Meanwhile, Trump antagonizes our chief debt holder, China. For better or worse, China holds our national debt. If tensions rise between the two nations, as we have every reason to expect they will, the United States may default on its national debt for the first time in modern history. Now, Trump has defaulted many a time before, and this would be in character. What will happen is that no one will want to buy U.S. bonds, and anyone holding them is going to be holding Monopoly money. That would include retirees, dear old grandma and the like. There will be a lot of collateral damage, and suddenly the U.S. will have no way to meet obligations such as Social Security and so forth. There will be unhappy people gathering in the streets.
Trump may be cunning, but he is not half as smart as he thinks he is, and he is going to find that global politics is a lot tougher than it seemed at first. There is a reason that Putin backed Trump, and that reason is not to help America or the American people.
Predictions: the federal minimum wage stays the same or is abolished altogether. 2017 inflation rate of 3.5%, 2018 inflation rate of 7%, 2019 inflation rate of 11%, and 2020 inflation rate of 14%. Bonds look like a poor investment right now. Pollution gets worse. The capital spending that Trump envisions will not actually improve anything in the country. He is going to build a wall and spend more on military gadgets for overseas adventures. Spending on scientific research will stagnate, with the one exception of weapons research. The infrastructure will remain as it is, although prison building will expand and become increasingly privatized. Marijuana will become illegal again nationwide, if Trump's Attorney General has his way. Trump is going to put a lot more people in prison as part of the traditional Republican "tough on crime" thing. Most of the new people in prison will be for non-violent offenses like marijuana. The largest per capita prison population in the world is just going to get larger and may even double. The Trump Presidency will be all about culture wars, stocking the Supreme Court with right-wingers, and expanding the military and doing a lot of bombing missions against third world nations to show everybody that Trump stands tall. There probably is going to be some hot fire traded between China and the U.S. in the South China Sea as well, and then an unexpected peace mission resulting in symbolic, empty "concessions" from China that make Trump look good while changing nothing. Trump is all about appearances. All he wants is to look good in the moment. If a world leader understands that, as Putin does, then it is easy to deal with Trump. Give America nothing but a kick in the teeth, but lie and agree with Trump and say the things that make him look good. That is all you have to do with Trump.
Sunday, December 11, 2016
"Dems?" Rats!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
techlorebyigor is my personal journal for ideas & opinions